He’s your best friend and would die for you

by Jake Quinn

It’s not unreasonable to assert that West Wing character Leo McGarry was the finest presidential Chief of Staff that ever lived, real or fictional. It is with that in mind, and prompted by the ever mischievous posts of a Mr W. Oil, that I put forth the following passage, care of Wikipedia (tongue in cheek of course):

When President Bartlet is giving instructions to the one Cabinet member who is appointed the designated survivor during the State of the Union address, he asks the man if he has a best friend, if that friend is smarter than him, and if he could trust that friend with his life. The Cabinet member says yes on all counts, Bartlet then says “That’s your chief of staff”, not aware McGarry has heard him in the next room and broken into a smile, visibly moved.